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You are here: Home / Politics / Activist Judges! / Good thing we hung onto this law, we might need it

Good thing we hung onto this law, we might need it

by Kay|  September 24, 20111:27 pm| 61 Comments

This post is in: Activist Judges!, Election 2012, Blatant Liars and the Lies They Tell

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Just wanted to put this together:

2006:

WASHINGTON, June 20 — House Republican leaders today abruptly canceled a planned vote to renew the Voting Rights Act after a rank-and-file rebellion by lawmakers who say the civil rights measure unfairly singles out Southern states and promotes multi-lingual ballots. But lawmakers critical of the bill mutinied in a closed meeting of House Republicans this morning just hours before the vote was expected to occur and several said it was uncertain whether a majority of Republicans would back the legislation at this point. “A lot of it looks as if these are some old boys from the South who are trying to do away with it,” said Representative Lynn A. Westmoreland of Georgia, who said it would be unfair to keep Georgia under the confines of the law when his state has cleaned up its voting rights record. “But these old boys are trying to make it Constitutional enough that it will withstand the scrutiny of the Supreme Court.”

Unfair! Conservatives are victims of the Voting Rights Act. The landmark civil rights law makes them feel all icky and sad inside. The New York Times was really too kind. The 2006 assault on the VRA was much more specific and targeted than implied:

Norwood Amendment (By Norwood, R-GA) which would have changed the formulas to determine states covered by Section 5′s pre-clearance requirements.

If you read the Times article, you will discover that (most) Republicans were embarrassed by their Right wing fringe and the opposition to the VRA. That’s right. Just a few years ago, most Republicans downplayed the GOP opposition to the Act, and shamed their extremist fringe into sitting down and shutting up. No more.

2011:

The Department of Justice weighed in today on the controversial Texas redistricting map that Gov. Rick Perry signed in May and civil rights groups argue intentionally weakens the Latino vote to benefit Republicans. The DOJ signaled their concern that the map discriminates against minorities and therefore violates the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The DOJ would usually have to “pre-clear” such changes to make sure they don’t unfairly affect minority voters, but Texas chose to skip that process, putting the fate of the new congressional map in the hands of a three-judge panel. In their court filing, the DOJ “den[ies] that the proposed Congressional plan complies with Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act” because it does not “maintain or increase the ability of minority voters to elect their candidate of choice in each district” compared to the benchmark.

There’s much, much more than I’ve shown here. There’s lawsuit after lawsuit brought by conservative groups trying to gut or nullify the VRA.

“You have the federal government having to approve things, laws and ordinances, that are passed by local governments and state governments. You don’t see that in any other area,” says Hans von Spakovsky, a former Justice Department official under President George W. Bush.

That’s what passes for an argument in conservative circles: “federal government” (bad) “approve things” (very bad) “any other area” (we’re victims, unfair). It’s a collection of Right wing anger-inducers. He’s their election law expert, and he’s constantly quoted.

If you’re a liberal and you’re wondering why you feel you are fighting the same battles over and over again, wonder no more. You are. The opposition never, ever quits.

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Reader Interactions

61Comments

  1. 1.

    arguingwithsignposts

    September 24, 2011 at 1:33 pm

    You don’t see that in any other area

    Is that even true? I seem to recall something about Indiana’s medicare(aid?) system where the federal government shot it down.

    ETA: I don’t expect it to be true, but want clarification. I wish the reporter would call him out on it if it is a lie.

    ETA2: Maybe if you folks (the aforementioned parties who are pissed about VRA) would do the right thing and stop trying to screw over the non-whites, you wouldn’t be in this position.

  2. 2.

    Elie

    September 24, 2011 at 1:36 pm

    Wow!

    That whole mask of being a fair person believing in equal rights for all citizens has just completely come off, revealing the beast behind it for all to see.

    It is sad and tremendously disturbing that their desperation and rage has so far exceeded any sense of self control. They are naked in their ugliness, but I hope that most people will not turn their eyes away and that they will acknowledge that this is happening. That is my fear, that many people just will deny this because it says that we are no longer in a stable and calm, balanced country of laws and fairness…

    we will see. The MSM will not report on this the way it should — you can be sure of that.

  3. 3.

    MAJeff

    September 24, 2011 at 1:38 pm

    @Elie:

    That whole mask of being a fair person believing in equal rights for all citizens has just completely come off, revealing the beast behind it for all to see.

    Was the mask ever on? I mean, this is just an attempt to maintain Southern “heritage.”

  4. 4.

    Uncle Clarence Thomas

    September 24, 2011 at 1:38 pm

    .
    .
    Sweat not. Attorney General Holder is a Voting Class Warrior.
    .
    .

  5. 5.

    Mino

    September 24, 2011 at 1:42 pm

    @Uncle Clarence Thomas: No kidding. It’s become a wonderment how he is able to ignore all these recent infringements. It must involve looking back or some such.

  6. 6.

    Kay

    September 24, 2011 at 1:42 pm

    @arguingwithsignposts:

    He’s talking about pre-clearance. The federal government “pre-clears” election-related law under the VRA, in certain states and districts, because those states and districts have a history of discrimination.
    But the distinction has to do with the mechanics of elections. The nature of elections is that they are one-shot deals. No do-overs. A lot of election law is expedited and such, designed to address damage BEFORE the damage is done. That’s why you see emergency injunctions/mandates on election day, regarding poll closing and such. No do-overs, for that election. No chance to go through the ordinary (long) process.
    The pre-clearance provisions are deliberately designed to avoid discriminatory practice before an election.

  7. 7.

    Roger Moore

    September 24, 2011 at 1:43 pm

    I’m pretty sure these bozos think the 14th Amendment is unconstitutional. Yes, I know that’s unpossible, but that’s what they believe.

  8. 8.

    Elie

    September 24, 2011 at 1:43 pm

    @MAJeff:

    Well, never fully “on”, but now there is not even the vaguest pretense….

    Is this unprecedented in human history? Of course not.. we are territorial primates and this is what we do when we are threatened and not able to override our fear with learned and intelligent behavior. We just become chimps baring our teeth and screaming as we attack.

    Wow — this upcoming election is going to be something else… Holy Shit!

  9. 9.

    MikeJ

    September 24, 2011 at 1:45 pm

    @Roger Moore: Yes, I’ve actually read this at Free Republic. Their claim is that the manner in which it was passed was wrong, so it doesn’t count.

  10. 10.

    Hill Dweller

    September 24, 2011 at 1:46 pm

    Hans von Spakovsky is a piece of shit. He was a key player in politicizing the Bush Justice Dept. Since leaving, he has been at the center of the republicans’ voter suppression push, the elevation of the black panther non story, and now gutting the VRA.

  11. 11.

    Kay

    September 24, 2011 at 1:47 pm

    @Elie:

    The MSM will not report on this the way it should—you can be sure of that.

    I’m an (infamous) pollyana around here, so take this as you will, but I disagree with this. The MSM have been covering the hell out of voting issues, and that’s brand new. It’s now a front-burner issue. I’m pleased by that.
    It’s about god-damned time. We wouldn’t be in this mess if they had done some due diligence for the last ten years, instead of printing GOP press releases.

  12. 12.

    Bubblegum Tate

    September 24, 2011 at 1:47 pm

    Question: When’s the last time Republicans ever did anything to expand voting rights, simply voting, improve access to polling, etc.? I know they can technically claim they did so with the Civil Rights Act, but have they done anything since the post-CRA realignment?

  13. 13.

    mk3872

    September 24, 2011 at 1:47 pm

    Remember moves like this one by the DoJ when goons like Hamsher, Moore and Maher try to convince Americans that there is no difference between Perry, Romney & Obama.

    No way that a GOP DoJ would aggressively defend the Voting Rights Act unless they perceived it to be biased against Christians.

  14. 14.

    Raven (formerly stuckinred)

    September 24, 2011 at 1:49 pm

    Norwood was such a fucking idiot. I was at a thing where he said 9/11 and Vietnam were the same fight.

  15. 15.

    kay

    September 24, 2011 at 1:51 pm

    @mk3872:

    It’s actually a big deal, because it indicates the Civil Rights Division is no longer politicized, as it was under Bush. It’s a strong stance. They’re saying Texas deliberately discriminated re: Hispanic populations, with (parts) of the law Perry signed. That’s a strong statement.

  16. 16.

    Spaghetti Lee

    September 24, 2011 at 1:51 pm

    Kinda puts a dent in Republican arguments that Democrats Are The Real Racists and Republicans Passed the Civil Rights Laws when they’re doing their damnedest to repeal them. Why not just bring back to poll tax, guys? That would make your libertarian wing all warm and fuzzy inside.

  17. 17.

    Roger Moore

    September 24, 2011 at 1:55 pm

    @Kay:

    The pre-clearance provisions are deliberately designed to avoid discriminatory practice before an election.

    There’s more to it than that. In principle, the DoJ could wait until the new law is passed and then challenge it. DoJ could demand an injunction so that the new law didn’t take effect and then litigate things normally. What pre-clearance does is to switch the normal rules, so that election laws in some areas are presumed to be discriminatory until proven otherwise. That is distinctly different from other areas, where laws are assumed to be valid and it’s the DoJ’s burden to prove that they’re invalid. I’d say the pre-clearance requirements are clearly justified, given those areas’ century plus of passing discriminatory election laws, but it is unusual.

  18. 18.

    kay

    September 24, 2011 at 1:56 pm

    @Spaghetti Lee:

    The part that is most alarming to me is the difference between 2006 and 2011.

    What was fringe in the GOP is now mainstream. 2006 to 2011 is not a long time. We’re not talking about some slow evolution. They’re lurching Right, on bedrock issues that they had formerly taken some (justifiable) pride in supporting and advancing.

    Voting rights used to be bipartisan. Access used to be bipartisan. No more.

  19. 19.

    Mino

    September 24, 2011 at 1:57 pm

    @mk3872: I seem to remember that Texas got slapped last time, too. Of course, it wasn’t a regularly scheduled gerrymander. And I believe Bush was in the White House in 2003. Of course his AG wasn’t the one who raised the fuss.

    But seriously, why haven’t there been federal charges raised, particularly over these voter ID issues, but also over deliberate restrictions of opportunity.

  20. 20.

    Roger Moore

    September 24, 2011 at 1:58 pm

    @MikeJ:
    Yeah, there’s a whole theory around the idea that everything the Federal Government has done since the Civil War has been inherently invalid. It’s part and parcel of the group that would really like to repeal the Civil War.

  21. 21.

    Spaghetti Lee

    September 24, 2011 at 1:59 pm

    @Mino:

    If it had been the state government of, say, New York or California fiddling with their districts to give minorities above-average representation, you can bet the whole right wing would be calling for their heads on pikes.

  22. 22.

    Wag

    September 24, 2011 at 2:01 pm

    In Colorado our new secretary of state is a piece of shit GOP vote suppressing hack. To their credit, The Denver Post, (strongly GOP leaning newspaper) is calling him out repeatedly.

  23. 23.

    Alex S.

    September 24, 2011 at 2:01 pm

    I have a feeling it will get worse. And Texas is the major battleground. If it becomes purple, it’s game over for the Republican Party.

  24. 24.

    kay

    September 24, 2011 at 2:01 pm

    @Roger Moore:

    There’s more to it than that. In principle, the DoJ could wait until the new law is passed and then challenge it

    Right, I agree, on “more than that”. I do think there’s a huge difference in election-related process between principle and practice, though. There’s a clear recognition that time matters, because there are so many extraordinary process mechanisms to get in there, quick, and fix it. We’re talking about hours, not days.

  25. 25.

    Mino

    September 24, 2011 at 2:02 pm

    @Roger Moore: Invalid for the whole country or just those states of the Confederacy?
    Heh.

  26. 26.

    Roger Moore

    September 24, 2011 at 2:03 pm

    @kay:

    They’re lurching Right, on bedrock issues that they had formerly taken some (justifiable) pride in supporting and advancing.

    It couldn’t possibly have anything to do with having a Socia1ist, Muslim, Kenyan Usurper in the White House, could it?

  27. 27.

    Linkmeister

    September 24, 2011 at 2:04 pm

    @Hill Dweller: Absolutely correct. TPM has been all over him. Even Wikipedia has negatives.

  28. 28.

    kay

    September 24, 2011 at 2:04 pm

    @Bubblegum Tate:

    They have, with Motor Voter, in 1993. That was bipartisan. I can’t really say “Republicans” did it, though, because it was like pulling teeth. They did eventually vote for it, though.
    So, I’d say “1993” is the last time they acted with (some) good faith on this issue.

  29. 29.

    Mino

    September 24, 2011 at 2:05 pm

    And the lastest gambit of screwing with the electorial college might just have an outcome that bites them if we go to direct election of the President, as many want now.

  30. 30.

    Alex S.

    September 24, 2011 at 2:09 pm

    Hans von Spakovsky is one of those republicans with immigrant guilt.

  31. 31.

    Chris

    September 24, 2011 at 2:09 pm

    @kay:

    Well, let’s not wax too poetic on the pride – the “party of Lincoln” and “party of the Civil Rights Act” shit was always shit, a gotcha talking point to throw at Democrats somewhere in the “you’re the real racists!” argument, not something the average Republican voter actually believed or took pride in, not since before the eighties at least.

    But yeah, I agree with the rest. The Muslim-hate is where it’s been especially obvious to me at least. Before 2008, the leaders of the party at least continued to say “we are at war with terrorism, but not Islam, those are two different things” (hell, McCain even said he’d vote for a Muslim if he had the right ideas: can you imagine any of their candidates saying that in this party?) The base was Islamophobic as hell, but the leaders kept them in check, which is unthinkable today.

  32. 32.

    kay

    September 24, 2011 at 2:10 pm

    @Roger Moore:

    It couldn’t possibly have anything to do with having a Socia1ist, Muslim, Kenyan Usurper in the White House, could it?

    That or demographic changes.

    I have this theory (I’m pulling this out of my ass, mind you) that conservative voters want to feel like they are “good people” (better people?) as compared to liberals. I get that sometimes, talking to them. So I wonder when that runs up against this venal and malicious bullshit their leaders are always pulling, and crashes.

    I think there’s a tipping point, and they’re getting close to reaching it. I hope.

  33. 33.

    Davis X. Machina

    September 24, 2011 at 2:11 pm

    We are privileged to be living in an age where we can be entertained by the spectacle of a nation, with a majoritarian, representative form of government, that somehow manages to feature an enormous oppressed majority.

  34. 34.

    Mino

    September 24, 2011 at 2:13 pm

    @Davis X. Machina: LOL Bread and circuses.

  35. 35.

    Davis X. Machina

    September 24, 2011 at 2:17 pm

    @Mino:
    L’enfer, c’est nous-mêmes
    It’s hard to stick it to The Man when you are the Man. Not impossible, though. That’s the genius of Newt.

  36. 36.

    Evolved Deep Southerner

    September 24, 2011 at 2:19 pm

    Hans von Spakovsky, a former Justice Department official under President George W. Bush.

    Is that a perfect name for an old-school James Bond villain, or what?

  37. 37.

    Roger Moore

    September 24, 2011 at 2:20 pm

    @Mino:

    Invalid for the whole country or just those states of the Confederacy?

    Invalid for the whole country. Their basic belief is that secession was a valid option and suppressing it was invalid, so everything that flowed from the Civil War, including every action taken by the Federal government since 1865, is inherently illegitimate. It’s sort of the ultimate Lost Cause argument: we were right, so everything that’s happened since we lost is invalid.

  38. 38.

    kay

    September 24, 2011 at 2:22 pm

    @Evolved Deep Southerner:

    Read this.

    It’s about Al Franken making a fool out of the conservative election expert, in Senate hearings.

    The study Franken is referring to was up on the Federalist Society site for months.

  39. 39.

    Mike in NC

    September 24, 2011 at 2:23 pm

    @Davis X. Machina:

    We are privileged to be living in an age where we can be entertained by the spectacle of a nation, with a majoritarian, representative form of government, that somehow manages to feature an enormous oppressed majority.

    Looking at the calendar, we should again start hearing about the ‘War on Christmas’ (part of the greater ‘War on Christians’) in about three weeks.

  40. 40.

    Mike in NC

    September 24, 2011 at 2:25 pm

    @Evolved Deep Southerner:

    Is that a perfect name for an old-school James Bond villain, or what?

    Or the commandant of a concentration camp, c.1942.

  41. 41.

    Shalimar

    September 24, 2011 at 2:27 pm

    @Chris:

    The base was Islamophobic as hell, but the leaders kept them in check, which is unthinkable today.

    See Senator Mike Lee. There can be no check on the base anymore because the leaders are terrified of losing primaries more than general elections.

  42. 42.

    The Dangerman

    September 24, 2011 at 2:27 pm

    @Evolved Deep Southerner:

    Hans von Spakovsky … is that a perfect name for an old-school James Bond villain, or what?

    If it was Hans von Spankovsky, I’d agree with that premise.

    Back on topic, if I was on the wrong side of the demographic time bomb – and getting back on the right side of it would lose my base – I’d be doing everything to suppress the vote, too.

    Kinda on topic, has anyone heard: (1) How much a fence along the entire border would cost and (2) How do you fence at the Rio Grande?

  43. 43.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    September 24, 2011 at 2:30 pm

    @Roger Moore: Oh they totally think it is unconstitutional, for a variety of reasons. Thanks as always, kay, for the important post.

    OT, in OH news, I received an email from a group to which my predecessor enrolled our nonprofit. I’m invited to a session purporting to offer “The Truth about Issue 2,” with the headliner – Shannon Jones. I won’t be renewing our membership as we have no need to be in a chamber of commerce offshoot organization. It’s money we should spend supporting our mission instead.

  44. 44.

    Evolved Deep Southerner

    September 24, 2011 at 2:30 pm

    @Raven (formerly stuckinred): No fucking shit on Norwood. One of his young proteges, a young douchebag named Michael Harden, is representing my former hometown in the General Assembly.

  45. 45.

    kay

    September 24, 2011 at 2:31 pm

    @Chris:

    I think it’s all across the board. Did Newt Gingrich say at the last debate that UI was “welfare”?

    I think that’s a radical statement. Does Newt Gingrich really believe that conservative voters don’t collect unemployment?

    How far out there are they? What will they NOT say or do? is there a line they won’t cross? I’m not seeing it.

  46. 46.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    September 24, 2011 at 2:36 pm

    @kay:

    What was fringe in the GOP is now mainstream. 2006 to 2011 is not a long time. We’re not talking about some slow evolution. They’re lurching Right, on bedrock issues that they had formerly taken some (justifiable) pride in supporting and advancing.

    (emphasis added)

    That is quite the most frightening part, to me.

  47. 47.

    Roger Moore

    September 24, 2011 at 2:36 pm

    @kay:

    So I wonder when that runs up against this venal and malicious bullshit their leaders are always pulling, and crashes.

    I’d have an easier time believing your theory if there weren’t such a loud cheering section every time a Republican leader acted like a jackass. Maybe that cheering section is just a vocal minority within the party, but anyone who hasn’t noticed that the Republican party has been taken over by a gang of vicious, petty thugs just hasn’t been paying attention.

  48. 48.

    Davis X. Machina

    September 24, 2011 at 2:39 pm

    @kay:

    Does Newt Gingrich really believe that conservative voters don’t collect unemployment?

    No. He believes that conservative voters will however forgo it, and vote for the people taking it away, provided you promise people different from them, who look different, pray wrong and talk funny, are going to have theirs pulled first.

    And who’s to say he’s wrong?

  49. 49.

    kay

    September 24, 2011 at 2:41 pm

    @a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q):

    “The Truth about Issue 2,” with the headliner – Shannon Jones.

    It’s a full court press. Issue Two matters to conservatives, a lot, which seems to me to go against their insistence that this is simply a matter of budgeting.

    My state Senator was here, with the full support of the local newspaper, as usual, who printed his whiny rant on the front page. I once attended a charity event where he spoke, and he told an off-color joke that had racial implications, and after he told the joke, he turned and insisted the black musician standing behind him shake his hand. It was one of the most awkward exchanges I’ve ever witnessed. We got up and left. I really shouldn’t have to deal with his shameful personal issues at dinner, his inability to function like a normal adult human being, is the way I looked at it. That’s his problem.

  50. 50.

    Mino

    September 24, 2011 at 2:43 pm

    @Roger Moore: We’d better pray that SCOTUS doesn’t take this up as part of originalism.

    I do get the impression that Dems are seriously afraid to have important issues come before this court. And I can’t say they are wrong. How whack is that?

  51. 51.

    Elie

    September 24, 2011 at 2:53 pm

    @Kay:

    well that is damned good to hear… not sure i have heard any of those reports, but will keep my ears and eyes open..

  52. 52.

    Roger Moore

    September 24, 2011 at 3:16 pm

    @Mino:

    We’d better pray that SCOTUS doesn’t take this up as part of originalism.

    I have a hard time believing the Supreme Court would entertain a challenge like that. It’s not just a crazy fringe idea, it’s a crazy fringe of the crazy fringe idea. I’m not even sure that the Supreme Court could consistently rule that way, since it would retroactively invalidate their appointments. In Thomas’s case would make him ineligible to be a member of the Court, since it would reinstate Dred Scott. It’s sufficiently crazy it’s hard to imagine it happening even with the current band of Conservatives on the Court.

  53. 53.

    ppcli

    September 24, 2011 at 3:24 pm

    @The Dangerman:

    (2) How do you fence at the Rio Grande?

    Sharks with frickin’ laser beams.

  54. 54.

    pluege

    September 24, 2011 at 4:01 pm

    The opposition never, ever quits.

    the opposition are bad people. This is their nature. They are dominated by all the worst of human characteristics: greed, self-absorption, insecurity, violence, bigotry, sadism, authoritarianism, etc. We have done little to nothing to eradicate the worst of human characteristics among humanity. Hence the republican filth are endless.

  55. 55.

    Bloix

    September 24, 2011 at 4:03 pm

    @kay: And the reason Texas wants to go straight to court is that the federal bench has become more politicized than the justice Department.

  56. 56.

    Mino

    September 24, 2011 at 5:46 pm

    @Roger Moore: Guess I should have attached snark tags.

    But seriously, they pick and choose what is originalism to suit their agendas.

  57. 57.

    Dee Loralei

    September 24, 2011 at 6:47 pm

    You do such good and important work here Kay, I just wanna thank you for that.

  58. 58.

    PanurgeATL

    September 24, 2011 at 7:57 pm

    @pluege:

    But they think they’re good people, and as far as they’re concerned their diligence and perserverance (as opposed to DFH defeatism, pessimism, and sloth) is proof positive of that. They’re not bad people, they just don’t know when they’re being bad. And that makes them worse than they’d be otherwise.

  59. 59.

    Bubblegum Tate

    September 24, 2011 at 8:39 pm

    @kay:

    Oh, right, Motor Voter. Of course, some of the wingnuts I read (so you don’t have to!) want Motor Votor repealed. Yeesh.

  60. 60.

    ken

    September 24, 2011 at 9:33 pm

    We are voting for Obama in 2012 because he will shift the SCOTUS to 5-4 liberal majority. That’s it. Ruth is retiring and rumor has it a conservative will be stepping down.

  61. 61.

    Citizen Alan

    September 25, 2011 at 12:09 am

    Hans von Spakovsky. Hans von fucking Spakovsky. Jesus Christ, doesn’t he just look and sound like someone on the dock at the Nuremburg Trials?

    @ken:

    I think Ginsburg will retire during the next president’s term, whoever it is. I will be shocked if any of the conservatives leave the Court under a Democratic administration, and even more shocked if the GOP refrains from filibustering a replacement who is anywhere to the left of whichever Nazi swine steps down.

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